Shipwreck

How a Captain, Company, and Culture Sank the SS El Faro

De: Maeve McGoran

Narrado por: Maeve McGoran

2015 saw the worst American maritime disaster in decades. The captain of the SS El Faro commanded his crew to sail straight into a hurricane. The ship sank and all 33 crew members died.

The sinking raised troubling questions: Why did the captain choose to sail into the hurricane? Why did no one on board or on shore stop him? And why was such an old and heavily loaded ship even allowed on the water?

The crew of the SS El Faro is gone, but their haunting final hours were preserved by the ship’s black box. In Shipwreck, we hear immersive reenactments from their last voyage and new revelations from investigators, crew members’ families, and mariners who sailed on previous voyages of the El Faro. The narrative investigation reveals how corporate greed, government indifference, and a culture of obedience led to the shocking outcome.

The same forces that sank the El Faro are still at work today—not just in cargo shipping, but across the entire maritime industry, which carries millions of passengers every year.

What happened to the El Faro wasn't just a tragedy. It was a warning we can't afford to ignore.

Produced by Audible and Sugar23
Reported and written by Maeve McGoran
Executive Producers for Sugar23: Mike Mayer and Michael Sugar
Executive Producers for Audible: Anna Stitt and Martha Little
Senior Producers: Liam Billingham and Maeve McGoran
Producer: Joshua Lash
Editors: Caitlin Pierce and Ruxandra Guidi
Sound Design and Mix: Mischa Stanton
Featuring Original Music by Gary Gunn
Fact-Checking: Joseph Frischmuth
Black Box Reenactments Performed by:
Chopper Bernet
Dan Sachoff
David Perez Babich
Erica Beck
Jeff Priskorn
John Eleby
Joshua Lash
Rick Zieff
Directed by: Mike Mayer
Head of Creative Development at Audible: Kate Navin
Chief Content Officer at Audible: Rachel Ghiazza

Special thanks to the Fund for Investigative Journalism for helping fund this reporting.

©2025 Sugar23 Podcast Group, LLC (P)2025 Audible Originals, LLC

Riveting story

Really got immersed in the story. Actors portraying the last hour on the ship very engaging.

Disturbing and Necessary

Please listen to this story.
Please let it sink into the depths of your soul.
I can’t stop thinking of these lost souls and their families, as well as the corporate greed and “business as usual” philosophy that caused this disastrous tragedy.
Hold your loved ones dear.

Well rounded investigation into an American tragedy.

As a family who is impacted by the Maritime field., I believe this story was very well investigated and reported. It was respectful to the families .

Phenomenal

Incredible in-depth investigation into the loss of a ship and what lead up to the loss, including what appears to be corruption.

Excellent explanation of what happened to El Faro

Substance excellent in terms of background of the tragedy. So many mistakes made by the Captain, the company and inability of sailors to express concerns to Captain for fear of losing their jobs.
The actress who vocalizes Danielle not great. Lots of ughs and OKAYS! and sighs. Also speaks much too quickly to understand. Other performers were believable.
Recommend this book.

This tragic loss of 34 courageous lives could have been avoided if safety at sea was the priority instead of

The actors voices were phenomenal in capturing the high drama of this true story. More audible books free would be appreciated.

How far to trust

Liked the telling of the story. The black box narrative & crew’s family/friends.

Disliked- would have liked to learn more about why the crew members would have continued to work in such scary/ faulty conditions. There was so much about the corporate & political misdeeds which is of no surprise. Was it not as bad as how things lined up? Were they paid more to be on this ship? Of course this is all after the fact. Horrific.

WOW

Everything about this program was just so well done! I was completely intrigued and invested in this story.May all the crew rest in peace.

Shipwreck

I don't know anything about maritime subjects and I don't typically listen or read about it. I started listening to this on a whim. I am so glad I did, this was excellent!! Very well done and enjoyable.

Disturbing truth

Learned so much - the bravery of the crew and the mistakes they were required to make